Incorporating technology into the classroom can have many advantages. One of the easiest ways to do this is by introducing your students to Podcasts. There are many educational podcasts teachers can use to enhance students’ learning experience and encourage them to expand their knowledge.

Read on to discover the top educational podcasts teachers are incorporating into their classrooms every day.

4 Benefits of Using Academic Podcasts in the Classroom

Podcasts can be powerful learning tools. Below we’ve listed the 4 main reasons we recommend teachers use academic podcasts in their classrooms.  

1. They Can Keep Students Engaged

Variety is key to keeping students engaged. Incorporating podcasts into your lessons is a great way to share information by using new stories and different voices.

This gives students a break from day-to-day lectures. Plus, there’s a wide variety of podcasts available which makes it easy for you to tailor topics to student interest.

Whether we realize it or not, we listen to anything, we activate systems in our brain responsible for sight, sound, and motor control. When your students listen to an academic podcast, they have the opportunity to practice using visualization— an important skill for reading comprehension.

2. They Help Teachers Accommodate Different Learning Styles

If you’re a teacher, you’re probably familiar with the different types of learning styles. Students who are auditory learners often retain and comprehend information best through listening.

Podcasts are a great way to level the playing field for auditory learners and provide variety for other students. In addition, listening to podcasts can build confidence in pronunciation and literacy..

Many podcasts have transcripts available, which can provide helpful support for many students. This can be especially helpful for struggling readers, as well as students receiving special education services SPED, and English language learners (ELLs) students because they can hear how words should “sound” in a conversational environment.

3. They are Easily Accessible & Focus on a Wide Range of Topics

As we mentioned before, there are countless academic podcasts available for teachers and students, and fortunately, most are free. Plus, because of the large number available, teachers can choose from a wide array of topics, stories, and lessons.

Podcasts can also be used on a variety of platforms including laptops, phones, tablets, and more. This gives teachers the opportunity to find the podcasts that are the perfect fit for their students and their classroom resources.

4. They Promote Listening Comprehension

Listening comprehension is a crucial skill for every student’s literacy development. By listening to some of the top educational podcasts, students can improve their listening and communication skills. You can help your students develop their listening skills by providing strategic questions for them to answer during and after a podcast.

In addition, listening is a great way to build background knowledge of different subjects when learning a second language. With the right scaffolding strategies and practices, such as target listening, teachers can help ELL students develop language proficiency.

How to Incorporate Podcasts Into Your Lesson Plan

Deciding to use a podcast in your lesson doesn’t mean you “set it and forget it.” It’s important to create engaging activities to complement the podcast and promote students’ deeper understanding.

There are a variety of ways to use podcasts in the classroom- choose what works for you and your students.

Before You Start

First and foremost, it’s crucial that you ALWAYS listen to a podcast before playing it for your students. This will ensure all the information in the podcast is appropriate and aligns with what you’re teaching.

As you listen, create a list of key vocabulary words that you want your students to know. In addition to your chosen vocabulary words, compile a list of questions. After your students finish listening, you can use these questions to promote reflective thinking.

Remember, when you’re picking a podcast, consider the age of your students and the length of the episode. If it’s too long, you may have difficulty keeping their attention throughout the entire lesson.

Ways to Use Podcasts

After you’ve chosen your podcast, it’s time to decide how you’d like to use it in the classroom, some of these include:

• Whole group instruction- Play a podcast with the whole class during snack time, after packing up, or to introduce a concept at the beginning of a lesson.
• Independent centers- Assign a podcast to your students to listen to alone during free time or another time of their choosing.
• Sub plans– Ensure your class has access to a high-quality lesson even when you’re not there by providing a podcast paired with comprehension/discussion questions and extension activities for a substitute.
• Homework assignment- Give students a podcast to listen to at home along with questions to answer before and after listening.
• In-class discussion- Use a podcast to open up a class discussion by breaking students into pairs or groups and having them discuss what they’ve learned.

Activities With Academic Podcasts

There are also a number of activities you can use to complement the lessons students learn when listening to podcasts:

Compare & Contrast

Have students listen to two different podcasts that feature opposing viewpoints. After they’re done listening, lead a class discussion about the similarities and differences between the two podcasts. You can do this by having students create a Venn Diagram or participating in a class poll.

Click here to download our free Venn Diagram graphic organizer.

Make a Connection

Assign students a podcast episode. Have each student choose their favorite quote(s) from the episode and lead a discussion about why this resonated with them or sparked their curiosity.

Identify Fact/Opinion

Differentiating between fact and opinion is an important skill for critical thinking. As students listen to a podcast, have them fill out a graphic organizer with fact/opinion statements.

Answer Research Questions

Before listening to a podcast, provide students with a list of specific questions. Have your students answer the questions while listening to the podcast/reading the transcript. You can also teach students note-taking skills by giving them a pre-filled set of notes with blanks to fill in while they listen.

Create Their Own Podcast

Allow students to create their own podcasts as a culmination of a unit or alternative assessment. Students can research a topic, develop questions to interview their peers or teachers and record their own lessons or story.

Top Educational Podcasts for Core Subjects

In this section, we will share some of the top educational podcasts for core subjects including science, history, reading, and math. In addition to sharing different subjects, we will offer examples for grade levels (elementary, middle school, and high school).

Best Science Podcasts

Tumble

• Grade Level: Elementary
• About: This science podcast for kids tells stories about scientific discoveries and lessons from real scientists. Episodes are hosted by a science journalist and teacher. This podcast also offers the option for students to listen in Spanish.
• Duration: Episodes range from 15-70 minutes.

Brains On: With Moments of Um

• Grade Level: Middle school
• About: This award-winning podcast answers science questions about the world and encourages students to be curious. It has over 100 episodes and each week introduces a new co-host who is a student. The podcast also offers the option to read each episode’s transcript while listening.
• Duration: Episodes range from 20-40 minutes.

The Skeptics’ Guide to the Universe

• Grade Level: High school
• About: This award-winning podcast is dedicated to promoting critical thinking and science literacy. It has over 900 episodes and each episode includes a downloadable transcript, news items, quotes of the week, and show notes.
• Duration: Episodes range from 50-70 minutes.

Best History Podcasts

History Storytime – for Kids

• Grade Level: Elementary
• About: This podcast is co-hosted by two sisters (7 years old and 5 years old) and their father. Featuring over 100 episodes, the hosts focus on stories from history, covering many major events and people.
• Duration: Episodes range from 5-15 minutes.

History This Week

• Grade Level: Middle school
• About: This podcast covers momentous events in history that took place each week of the year. In addition, the hosts speak about people and places throughout history.
• Duration: Episodes range from 20-40 minutes.

Throughline

• Grade Level: High school
• About: This podcast covers countless historic events that have shaped our society and different cultures over the years. The hosts tell stories and discuss how moments in history can change our perspectives of the present.
• Duration: Episodes range from 40-60 minutes.

Best Reading Podcasts

Storynory

• Grade Level: Elementary
• About: This podcast offers kids new audio stories each week that focus on imagination, proper writing, and creative narration. In addition to fictional stories, this podcast offers factual stories and interviews to encourage students to think critically.
• Duration: Episodes range from 15-30 minutes.

Book Club for Kids

• Grade Level: Middle school
• About: This free award-winning podcast features middle school students reviewing and recommending tween and teen books. Each episode includes a review of a book, an interview with the book’s author, and a celebrity reading.
• Duration: Episodes range from 15-20 minutes.

A Way with Words

• Grade Level: High school
• About: This podcast focuses on language examined through culture and history. It features language debates, variations, and evolutions as well as etymology, linguistics, and regional dialects. In addition, episodes include word games, grammar, books, literature, and writing styles.
• Duration: Episodes range from 30-50 minutes.

Best Math Podcasts

But Why?

• Grade Level: Elementary
• About: This podcast focuses on an assortment of topics and questions for elementary students. While it is not solely focused on math, the podcast is hosted by kids and features a number of episodes that talk about mathematics.
• Duration: Episodes range from 10-50 minutes.

Mic Drop Maths

• Grade Level: Middle school
• About: Hosted by a nationally recognized mathematics teacher, and her students, this podcast dives into different mathematical concepts as well as how math can be interesting and fun. The episodes share math jokes, book recommendations, and math beliefs.
• Duration: Episodes range from 15-30 minutes.

The Math Dude

• Grade Level: High school
• About: Hosted by a mathematics professor with a Ph.D., this podcast breaks down complicated mathematical concepts and problems for high school students. The episodes share math tips and encourage students to recognize math in their everyday lives.
• Duration: Episodes range from 15-60 minutes.

Technology can be a great asset when it comes to teaching. Podcasts offer a host of benefits in the classroom. When teachers Incorporate podcasts into their curriculum, it shows students that there’s more than one way to learn.

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